Bed having a drop side supported upon guide brackets



Dec. 2, 1969 M. SIEGEL ETAL BED HAVING A DROP SIDE SUPPORTED UPON GUIDE BRACKETS Filed May 8, 1968 A K J 1 i w 2 7 Z W. m w z o/o/r, 7 w w m m m F w/w "m a Z x 8 4 "u 2 2 .J; J :H

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5 M wmw M5 OLC EM A Be we 00 V/. ED D 5 0 X W 2 A m m United States Patent 3,480,974 BED HAVING A DROP SIDE SUPPORTED UPON GUIDE BRACKETS Max Siegel and Allen D. Jacobs, Los Angeles, Calif., as-

signors to Babyline Furniture Corp., Los Angeles, Calif., a corporation of California Filed May 8, 1968, Ser. No. 727,519 Int. Cl. A47d 7/02 US. Cl. -100 4 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A bed such as a childs crib is disclosed which has a headboard and a footboard connected by a bed portion and a side capable of being moved vertically which is located so as to extend along the bed portion between the headboard and the footboard. With the disclosed bed guide rods are attached to the headboard and the foot board and these guide rods extend through holes in the portions of the drop side. The invention pertains to the use of guide brackets carried by these portions of the drop side to act as bearings engaging the guide rods so as to improve the nature and desirability of the bed. Such guide brackets preferably carry a trip or release member used in controlling the position of the drop side of the bed.

Background of the invention Beds which have a headboard and a footboard connected by an appropriate sleeping surface and by sides extending above the sleeping surface and between the headboard and footboard are frequently referred to as cribs. Such cribs are commonly used with children since because of the sides on such beds a child cannot roll over so as to fall out of any such bed. Occasionally, however, this type of bed is used with incontinent or other persons incapable of exercising usual adult restraint.

Beds or cribs of the type indicated in the preceding are most commonly constructed so as to employ sides which are capable of being moved vertically so as to gain access to the bed portion of such a bed. Most frequently this is accomplished by mounting on the headand footboards of such a bed vertically extending guide rods which extend through appropriate aligned holes in the ends of a side of such a bed. While unquestionably this type of construction is utilitarian, it nevertheless suffers from several severe drawbacks. One of these is considered t be particularly significant to the parents of children who utilize such cribs.

With the type of construction indicated the holes in a bed side accommodating the guide rods have had to be significantly larger than the guide rods themselves in order to prevent binding interfering with side movement. As the result of this, the side structure on such a bed or crib has not been relatively rigid with respect to the rest of such a bed or crib. This, in turn, has made it possible for a child to rattle a crib to a disconcerting extent.

Such comparatively large holes were considered particularly necessary with side edge members or rails formed out of wood, since wood tends to expand and contract depending upon atmospheric conditions. If the holes in wood edge members or rails were made to fit closely under certain humidity conditions with respect to the guide members depending upon the changes in humidity either a crib side would not slide satisfactorily or would become overly loose with respect to the guide rods. Further, since such holes in wood edge members 01' rails on a side tend to weaken the wood, there has been a tendency towards splintering in the general regions of such holes.

Summary of the invention An object of the present invention is to provide new and improved beds such as childs cribs of the type indicated in the preceding description having a bed or crib side mounted on guide rods which in turn are mounted on the headand foot-boards of such a bed or crib. A further object of this invention is to provide beds such as cribs which are relatively immune from rattling and the like by virtue of movement of the movable side on such a bed being moved with respect to the guide rods supporting such a side. Another objective of the invention is to provide beds such as childs cribs where the movement of the movable side of such a bed is independent of the expansion or contraction of wood when such aside is formed of wood.

A related objective of the invention is to provide beds such as cribs where there is little if any danger of splintering taking place at the ends of wood edges or rails on the movable sides of the crib. A further related objective of the invention is to provide beds such as cribs where members which may be easily and conveniently manufactured at a comparatively nominal cost, which may be easily and conveniently installed serve to connect the crib sides to the guide rods of such beds or cribs. An objective of this invention is also to accomplish lower crib costs and improved operation by utilizing such members to rotatably mount a trip or release member used in determining the position of the sides on such a bed or crib.

In accordance with this invention, these and various other objectives of it are achieved by using a guide bracket formed of a self-supporting polymer composition capable of acting or serving as a bearing. Each of the guide brackets used with this invention has a central portion and two ends connected by the central portion. These ends are spaced so as to fit closely against opposed portions of edge members or rails of a crib side, and carry bearing means which contact the guide rods on a crib of the type indicated. These guide brackets also include a support channel which may be used to rotatably hold a trip or release member of such a crib, eliminating the necessity for separately mounting such a trip member. The guide rods used with a crib employing the guide brackets of this invention preferably serve to hold the guide brackets in a position in which such a trip or release member cannot be dislodged from the side of the crib.

Brief description of the drawing Further details of this invention, as well as many specific advantages of it, will be apparent from a detailed consideration of the remainder of this specification, the appended claims and the accompanying drawing in which:

FIG. 1 is a side elevation view of a presently-preferred embodiment of a bed or crib in acc rdance with this invention having a drop side supported by guide brackets;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged view of a portion of FIG. 1 showing a guide bracket of this invention in use with respect to a bed headboard, an end of an edge member or rail of a crib side, a guide rod and an end of a trip member;

FIG. 3 is a partial cross-sectional view taken at line 33 of FIG. 2; and

FIG. 4 is an isometric view of a guide bracket as illustrated 'in preceding figures.

Those skilled in the art of juvenile and related furniture will realize that the present invention is not to be restricted by the accompanying drawing inasmuch as the precise details shown may be easily changed through the use of routine engineering and design skill without departing from the manner in which the present invention operates.

Detailed description The actual details of this invention are best more fully explained by reference to the accompanying drawing in which there is shown a bed or crib incorporating the present invention. This bed 10 includes a vertically extending headboard 12 and a footboard 14 connected by a conventional bed or bed portion 16. This bed 10 includes a movable or drop side 18 having a top edge member or rail 20 and a bottom edge member or rail 22. It will be understood that the bed 10 and the portions of it described in detail so far are conventional, and that different designs may be employed for these various different parts.

In the bed 10 the side 18 is movably mounted so as to be capable of being moved vertically through the use of guide rods 24 mounted on the sides of the headand footboards 12 and 14 facing one another. These guide rods 24 are spaced from the headand footboards 12 and 14. These guide rods 24 extend through aligned vertical holes 26 in the ends 28 of the top and bottom rails 20 and 22. It will be noted that with this invention the holes 26 are significantly larger than the guide rods 24. It is noted that with the bed 10 illustrated the top and bottom rails 20 and 22 are formed of wood, a material which will expand and contract in accordance with humidity con ditions, and which will splinter under various circumstances.

In accordance with this invention, the effects of such expansion and contraction and any tendencies for such splintering are minimized through the use of guide brackets 30 such as are indicated in detail in FIGS. 2, 3 and 4 of the drawing. One of these guide brackets 30 is preferably located at each of the ends 28 of the bottom rail 22. Similar guide brackets 30 may, if desired, be located at each of the ends 28 of the top rail 20, but it is considered preferable to use other structures at the ends 28 of the top rail 20. These guide brackets 30 are preferably formed out of a self-supporting polymer composition of a somewhat resilient character capable of serving as a bearing structure. Particularly suitable materials for such use are common injection molding grades or types of nylons.

Each of the guide brackets 30 includes a central portion 32 capable of extending along and in close contact with a side 34 of an end 28 of a rail 20 or 22. Opposed extremities of a central portion 32 in such a bracket 30 carry extending ends 36 which are capable of fitting over and closely against top and bottom surfaces 38 of a rail such as a rail 20 and 22. These ends 36 carry bearing bosses 40, each of which has a centrally-located bearing opening 42 dimensioned so as to fit closely against the exterior of a guide rod 24 in such a manner as to permit relative motion. Preferably one of these openings 42 is slightly larger than the other. The central portion 32 in each guide bracket 30 includes an inwardly directed U- shaped channel 44 adapted to hold a wire rod-like portion 46 of a conventional release or trip member 48.

In use the guide brackets 30 are installed as indicated in FIG. 3, on the ends 28 of the bottom rail 22 so that the bosses fit within the holes 26 in such a manner as to prevent movement of a guide bracket 30 with respect to a bottom rail 22. During such installation on the bottom rail 22 a portion 46 of the trip member 48 may be clamped in place in a channel 44 against the side 34 of the rail 22 so as to be rotatably held. Such installation may be conveniently accomplished by temporarily deforming the ends 36 so that the bosses 40 slip over the surfaces 38 into position within the holes 26. Then after such assembly, the guide rods 24 may be inserted through the guide brackets 30. Because the openings 42 differ slightly in size any misalignment of the guide rods 24 is accommodated without difficulty.

When so inserted, the side 18 is supported in such a manner that it may be easily and conveniently moved without rattling between such a rod 24 and a rail such as the rail 22 because of the action of the guide brackets 30. Further, such a guide bracket 30 when so installed will tend to reinforce and protect the end of the rail upon which it is located in order to minimize any tendency towards splintering an end 28. Further, when so installed, the trip member 48 may be rotated through the use of a conventional handle 50 on this trip member 48 to rotate offset ends 52 of it out of contact with conventional support or holding brackets 54 mounted on the heador footboard 12 and 14 so that the side 18 may be moved vertically. Normally a small spring 56 is used with the trip member 48 to bias it in its position where the ends 52 will automatically engage the brackets 54 in a conveniional manner.

From a careful consideration of the preceding, those skilled in the art will realize that through the use of guide brackets 30 as herein described a cost savings may be achieved in the construction of beds such as cribs. In the juvenile furniture field, comparatively minor cost savings are considered to be important in achieving commerical success. Such individuals will also realize that guide brackets such as the guide brackets 30 are very efiicient for their intended purpose and enable a bed such as a crib to have advantageous characteristics.

We claim:

1. A bed having headboard and footboard, a bed portion extending between said headboard and footboard, parallel guide rods extending along edges of said headboard and said footboard, said guide rods being located so as to extend vertically and being spaced from said headboard and said footboard, a side having horizontally extending rails, each of said rails having vertically extending holes in the ends thereof, said guide rods extending through said holes, said side being movable with respect to said bed portion along the length of said guide rods, a release member pivotally mounted on one of said rails, said release member extending beyond the ends of said side and having ends located adjacent to said headboard and said footboard, holding brackets mounted on said headboard and said footboard capable of being engaged by said release member to hold said side in a position with respect to said headboard and said footboard, said release member being capable of being rotated so that the ends thereof are disengaged from said holding brackets in order that said side may be moved along said guide rods, wherein the improvement comprises:

a guide bracket located on each end of the rail upon which said release member is located,

each of said guide brackets being formed of a self-supported polymer composition capable of acting as a bearing,

each of said guide brackets having a central portion and ends located on opposite extremities of said central portion,

each of said ends of said guide brackets including hearing means fitting into said holes on said ends of said rails, said guide rods extending through said bearing means on said guide brackets so as to be supported thereby in contact with the interiors of said bearing means,

each of said guide brackets also including a support channel, said support channels on said guide brackets engaging and pivotally supporting said release members.

2. A bed as claimed in claim 1 wherein:

the central portion of each of said guide brackets fits closely against the rail upon which said guide bracket is located, and

said support channel extend into the central portions of said guide brackets from the portions of said brackets which fit against the rail upon which said guide brackets are located, and

said release rods are secured in place in said channels by said guide brackets fitting against the rail upon which said guide brackets are located.

3. A bed as claimed in claim 1 wherein said polymer composition is a nylon composition.

4. A bed as claimed in claim 3 wherein:

the central portion of each of said guide brackets fits closely against the rail upon which said guide bracket is located, and

said support channels extend into the central portions of said guide brackets from the portions of said brackets which fit against the rail upon which said guide brackets are located, and

said release rods are secured in place in said channels by said guide brackets fitting against the rail upon which said guide brackets are located.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,860,350 11/1958 Miller 5100 3,365,731 1/1968 Royce 5-100 3,405,412 10/1968 Mixon 5-100 10 CASMIR A. NUNBERG, Primary Examiner U.S. Cl. X.R. 5-1l 

